My third Shabbat here...I can't believe it's been almost three weeks since I left New Jersey! It's amazing how much I continue to learn every day, and how comfortable I've become here.
This Shabbat proved just as fascinating (but still relaxing) as my first two.
First off, the challah turned out quite delicious (thank you, thank you), despite the minimal rising. Naavah grabbed a huge chunk--after everyone had gotten some first, of course--and insisted that we eat it together, as co-bakers. She's five, by the way.
I also talked to Alex, a Jew from Ghana who is one of the rabbi's international students, about the story of his community. While he's still researching the history, a task he's taken on as he tries to revive it, he gave me an outline which was already intriguing. He said that about 150 years ago, there was a tribal king which wanted people to worship on Saturdays, keep kosher and observe various other Jewish laws. He's unsure where these practices were from and when they date from--whether these may be Jews who came to Ghana long ago, or influenced by others--he's still trying to find out! In any case, when Christian missionaries came in, they offered people money and other goods to convert to Christianity, and eventually most were convinced, including the king, while some just remained with little religion. The practices had essentially been lost until 1974, when a man Alex referred to as the "Founder" brought back practices according to the Hebrew Bible, the only text which they had to turn to. They kept up these practices until 1991, when the founder died, but following his death the practices fell into neglect once again. Alex's brother convinced him to revive the old ways, and after much prayer, a dream, and some revelatory reading of passages in Jeremiah, he decided to listen to his brother and adopt Judaism as a true faith. They've since formed a synagogue of about 100 people and have made contact with some of the same American groups as the Abayudaya, and Alex is hoping to go back to his community and teach them Hebrew and the Torah he has learned here.
This story and Shabbat in general also got me thinking about the theology of the Jews here and what has created it--factors ranging from the backgrounds of its spiritual leader(s) to the educational system here, a system which fosters little if any abstract thought. And because it is developing largely in isolation, there are inevitably differences from communities which, though they may be defined by certain beliefs, are still in conversation or at least within earshot of other theological strands. I'm still thinking about these issues, though it really increases my sense of this community as being sort of a grafted leaf of Judaism--and it is now to be seen how it grows on very different tree.
In other news: tomorrow, there is a family coming from Florida who will be celebrating their son's bar mitzvah here on Thursday with a service and a big party for the whole community. It should be quite an interesting affair!
Also tomorrow--I'm heading on a trip down memory lane--to Ramogi, the village I lived in last year. As luck would have it, Aaron is going to Tororo, the nearest city to Ramogi, and he's offered to take me, so I can't wait to visit old friends and say hi to this year's AJWS group!
Shavua tov!
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